Read The Hunger (Book 3): Ravaged Online

Authors: Jason Brant

Tags: #vampires, #End of the World, #Dracula, #post apocalyptic, #Zombies, #apocalypse

The Hunger (Book 3): Ravaged (17 page)

BOOK: The Hunger (Book 3): Ravaged
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“Wildman, I need you to reach me. I have a proposition that’s mutually beneficial to both of us.” Colt waited for a response that never came. After several seconds, he stood from the table and stalked across the room, his mouth contorted in disgust.

“What do we need him for, anyway?” Cass asked. “If we’re going to destroy their nest in Greensburg, then let’s go do it. Why do we have to have him with us?”

“He knows their patterns and movements. He’s in contact with other survivors. The knowledge he can provide us with will be invaluable.”

Brown said, “But we already know where the tunnels are. We don’t need him to tell us anything.”

Colt stopped in the doorway and glared at them over his shoulder. “I appreciate the input, but this is what I do. I saved your lives, didn’t I? This camp is still standing because of me. Let me do what needs to be done.”

With that, he stormed from the cabin and shouted for one of his soldiers.

Eifort sat by the table covered in maps. She hadn’t said a word since they’d come inside.

“What do you think of this guy?” Cass asked her.

“I think there is a reason the military isn’t meant to be used as a police force.” Eifort leaned back in her chair. “We’re trained to go in and take out the enemy, not to govern civilians.” She lowered her voice. “And I think there is something else going on here. He has ulterior motives.”

“Like what?” Brown asked.

“I don’t know yet. Why would he be so obsessed with finding the Wildman, though? Like Cass said, we know where the nest is, so what do we need him for?”

Cass watched Colt strut across the field through the window. In the two days since they’d lost Lance, they’d been going to Greensburg and mapping out as many of the tunnel entrances as they could find.

Colt argued emphatically that they needed to have as much information as possible before they went on the offensive. That made sense to Cass, to an extent, but now she’d begun to wonder if the man wasn’t delaying things intentionally.

She wanted vengeance and would soon go out on her own if necessary. She’d done it before and wouldn’t hesitate to do so once again.

They had other problems to deal with too.

Several people had fled the camp. While that alleviated their overpopulation, it was disconcerting that people would rather risk almost certain death in the streets than face the intense pressure of the nights at the compound. The pressure of the Vladdies and their constant occupation of the forest made it difficult to keep people calm.

Lance’s death had cast a pall over those who remained. Cass knew that he was held in high regard, but she hadn’t understood how much people revered him. His gentle, jovial nature had put everyone at ease.

When things were at their worst, he was at his best. He usually did the wrong thing, but his intentions were always noble. He cared for people, fought for them, and they adored him for it.

Cass hated herself for not realizing just how much he meant to the others. She despised herself for not telling him how much he meant to
her.

Knowing that he had fallen made everyone wary of the camp’s chances.

Even the presence of Colt and his men didn’t give the survivors any comfort.

“We need to consider abandoning the camp,” Cass blurted.

“What?” Brown shook his head. “No way. This place is our best chance.”

“This place is falling apart, Doc. Look around—we’re losing people like crazy. A week ago, we were running out of space for everyone. Now, people are sneaking away because they see the end is coming. There is no hope left here.”

“Where would we go?” Eifort asked. “There is nothing but death out there. At least we have light here.”

“I think we need to get another boat.”

“That didn’t work out for us the last time, in case you forgot.” Brown walked over to the window and pointed at the solar array. “We have power. Food. Shelter. I can take care of the sick and wounded here. We can’t do that on a boat.”

Cass reached behind her back and gripped the handle of her axe, squeezing the tape she’d wrapped around it. She’d rarely taken it off in the past forty-eight hours. It was all that gave her comfort anymore. “I’m not so sure that we’re going to be able to take care of anyone else much longer.”

Brown turned toward Cass, locking his gaze on hers. His eyes narrowed. “I’m not abandoning them. I refuse to leave those who have trusted us. I would rather die.”

“Goddamn it, Doc. We’re all going to die if we don’t—”

“I won’t do it.”

Cass looked to Eifort, who remained at the table. “Will you help me out here?”

“If Emmett stays, I stay.”

“You guys are living in a fantasy land. Even if we could make it work here, you’re forgetting about the douche bag out there with a tank. Do you really think we’re still in charge around here? He’s calling the shots now, not us. Remember what happened to that camp in Maryland? Things didn’t end up the best down there.”

“He and his men are keeping us alive here,” Brown said. “I don’t like it, but that’s the truth of the matter. Without them, we’re all dead.”

“Only if we stay here. We could sneak out and get by like we did before. And how long can he keep us safe here? The Vladdies have us surrounded
every single night
. They’re getting smarter, and we’re just hanging out like sitting ducks. We didn’t last long on the last boat, but that’s because Ralph was dogging us at every turn. Things are different now. If we can get away from Colt, we can make it.”

“Cass, I don’t know how else to say this—I’m
not
leaving my people.”

Cass closed her eyes and concentrated on remaining calm. Her frustration with everything was reaching a boiling point. She hadn’t even been able to truly grieve over the loss of the love of her life yet.

“Maybe there is a way we can do both,” Eifort said. She stood and leaned over the table, examining a map in the middle.

“What do you mean?” Brown turned toward her.

“What if we could take everyone with us?”

“And go where?”

Eifort traced her finger along the map, moving from left to right. “To the coast.”

Cass stepped beside the table and looked at the path Eifort pointed out. The map was of the entire state of Pennsylvania.

“How far is the drive to the ocean?” Eifort asked. “Four hours, right? Maybe four and a half?”

“That was before the roads were clogged with abandoned vehicles and bridges were destroyed.” Brown jabbed his finger at the Pennsylvania Turnpike, which ran across the entire state. “That’s a complete mess now. It would take much longer to make it. I doubt we could do it in a day.”

“We’re getting, what, fourteen hours of sunlight? Fifteen? We could make it.”

“And if we don’t? Then what? We die?”

“Not if we take enough wood to set multiple fires. We would have gas to run the headlights and some spotlights. We could set up a temporary camp if necessary. Besides, we lived out on the farm for a couple of days without any protection, and they never found us. Maybe they wouldn’t even know we’re out there on the road.”

Cass’ fingers kneaded the handle of her axe. “So we would go in a caravan, like Ralph did? Take some of the tankers and RVs?”

“Exactly.”

“I like it.” Cass used her own finger to follow the turnpike from Greensburg to Philadelphia. “We would have to go around Philadelphia. We can’t afford to get bogged down if a block is closed off, and we have to turn around. But I don’t know that we could plan to spend the night out in the middle of nowhere. That might have worked a month ago, but not now that the infected are figuring out our little tricks. We either make it, or we don’t.”

They looked to Brown, who stood silently, staring at the map. He grunted after a few seconds. “This feels suicidal. What about finding a boat on a river or a lake? Maybe work our way to the coast in stages?”

Eifort shook her head. “That won’t work. A lot of lakes didn’t allow boats to sit in the water. Owners had to take their boats out every time they wanted to go fishing. We can’t risk getting to a lake and finding it empty.”

“You really think this is our best shot? This is what you think we have to do?” Brown glanced out the window again. “You better convince me in a hurry, before Colt comes back in.”

Cass continued, “We wouldn’t want to use the beltway around Philly. That has to be in rough shape too. So add another few hours to work our way around the city.”

“We would need a hell of a big boat for everyone to stay on,” Brown said. “A yacht or something similar.”

Eifort snapped her fingers. “The Wildman said a cruise ship is coming in soon, didn’t he? Maybe we could get on that and take it back out.”

“Too big. None of us would even know how to operate something of that size. The logistics of it are too much.” Brown leaned closer to the map. “But if a port is big enough for a yacht, then we can probably find something of a decent size nearby. Assuming all the boats haven’t been taken already. We surely aren’t the first people to think of escaping to the open water.”

“Even if a cruise ship is too big, we just have to get it a little ways off the coast and we’ll be fine. Even if we take several smaller boats for the first night, we could search for something better later.” Cass sifted through the maps, searching for one of Philadelphia. “We can still go ashore during the day to search for supplies and another ship.”

Brown rubbed his chin. “It could work. I still don’t like placing everyone’s lives in danger while we
hope
we can make it to the coast in less than a day.”

“I think Cass is right, Emmett. We can’t stay here much longer. The infected are pressing in, and Colt is getting shadier by the day.” Eifort reached out and grabbed his hand. “If we want to protect everyone out there, then we have to get them away from here. If we’re going to die, I’d rather do it while fighting for something better, rather than waiting around here.”

“Even if we could, what dock are we aiming for? We can’t drive the whole way there without having an exact destination in mind.”

Eifort studied the map some more, before turning to them with a grin. She recounted several vacations during her childhood when she’d gone on trips to her uncle’s home. He had a house on a river close to the ocean. He often took them fishing in his boat. If he had put down a beer or two, he would take them out to the open sea. She found the dock where he’d kept his boat on the map and tapped it. That was where they would go.

Brown looked out the window again. “What about the major? How could we get away while he’s here? There’s no way he’ll let us leave.”

Cass leaned against the table and pursed her lips as she thought about Colt. As much as she’d grown to distrust him, she still wanted to use him to help destroy the local nest. The Vladdies had killed Lance, and she would have her revenge. Beyond that, Cass feared what the major had planned.

How would he react if he discovered they were planning to flee the camp? She agreed with Brown that he wouldn’t let them leave. He wanted everything controlled. If they were to have a chance of escape, then he would have to be taken out of the picture somehow.

Cass had little doubt that she could kill the man, if necessary. She could get the drop on him. But his men would kill her, and possibly everyone else, in retaliation. They had a tank, helicopter, and LAVs. It would be a massacre.

“I’ll go with him to take out the nest. When we’re gone, you get everyone out of here.” Cass tapped her finger on the turnpike again. “Stay on the highway, and I’ll catch up to you.”

“Absolutely not,” Brown said. “If he finds out what we’re doing, and you’re with him—”

“He won’t. We’ll be too busy with the nest. When we’re finished, I’ll sneak away, get a motorcycle or dirt bike, and take off. I’ll put my axe in his chest if I have to.”

Eifort leaned back, frowning. “Why not stay with us when he goes after the nest? Pretend you’re sick or that you’ve twisted your ankle. Being with him when the rest of us are on the run is a huge risk.”

“Because I want to wipe out those fucking vampires, that’s why. I owe them. I owe them for Lance.”

Chapter 22

––––––––

S
weat covered Lance as he struggled to rest. He fell in and out of sleep, lulling at the edge of nightmares about vascular horrors.

Hushed voices from the other room brought him the rest of the way to consciousness. He focused on them, hoping to hear what Liz and Paul, the Yinzer of Monroeville, were whispering about.

He gave up after half a minute and called out to them. “I’m awake so you might as well speak up. It’s easier for me to eavesdrop that way.”

Liz appeared in the doorway, her cheeks flushed.

Lance recognized that pissed-off expression. She’d spent years aiming it at him. He asked, “What?”

“We’re having a disagreement, that’s all.”

Paul peeked at Lance over Liz’s shoulder. “You might as well tell the truth. It’s about him, after all.”

“Me? You’re the one who is saying we should leave him here.”

“Leave me here?” Lance braced himself and sat up. It was the first time he’d successfully done it since he’d woken up in the safe room. The pain in his chest was white hot, barely manageable. His empty stomach twisted, and he fought against dry heaves.

“Lance, what are you doing?” Liz rushed over, putting her hands on his shoulders. “Lay back down!”

“I’m fine. Tell me what you meant by ‘leave him here.’ That sounds less than pleasant for me.”

Paul shrugged, “We’re abandoning this place tomorrow. You’re too weak to go with us.”

“Why would you leave? You have everything you need here.” The pain in Lance’s chest made him want to weep, but he held it in. He thought a sign of weakness might not bode well for him at that moment.

“The infected have almost broken through a spot on the rear wall. They’ve been working at it with tools, and it’s about to give.” Paul walked into the room and plopped into a chair by the workbench against the far wall. “I figure we can make it one more night before they get in here. It’s time to skeedaddle.”

“Where are you going?”

Liz sat on the cot by Lance’s leg and gave Paul an ugly glare. “We’re going to the British Virgin Islands. Supposedly, they’re still free of the infection. Paul has been talking to a man on the radio there for over a month.”

BOOK: The Hunger (Book 3): Ravaged
2.86Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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